Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1887-06-16

in Harper's War Volumes.
surface of the ground in such manner
that the tread of an unwary foot would
cause instant explosion. For q half mile
or more the timber about Blakely had been
felled with the tops of the trees pointing
from the works and with their sharpened
extremities the branches stood ready to
greatly impede the advance of an attack.
ing force.
But through there and amidst q shower
of shot, shell, canister and bullets, the
Federals made their way to and over the
Confederate works.
The principal part of the assault had
been borne by division of colored troops
belonging to General Steele's command.
These men, it was reported on every hand,
bore themselves most CALAMITY.
Passing into Blakely early on the morn
ing of April 10, it having bee surrendered
at p. m. the day previous, an opportunity
was given to see things pretty much as the
Confederates had left them. One thing
that interested the writer greatly was some
captured haversacks containing Johnny's
rations. The meat was such as our men
would never have tasted unless reduced to
the verge of starvation, and the bread
seemed indescribably poor, and of such
character as Northern farmer would
hardly feed to his hogs 1t seemed to have
been made from meal of which more than
half was bran, and after being made into
small pones-" dodgers. had been appar
emily cooked in the ashes and given about
the appearance that two or three days
sun-drying would bestow.
That men would consent to live on such
food, and with scarcely any pay, daily en-
counter the vicissitudes of army life, and
when occasion called, cheerfully risked
their lives in battle, is a high tribute to
Southern hardwood, pluck and courage.
Most of the dead of both armies had al
ready been disposed of, but the body of
one man is specially remembered. He was
a Texan Captain, tall and slender in per-
son, with long black hair and whiskers.
His clothing was much better than that
worn by most persons in the Confederate
army, and it is remembered that he had on
his feet neat, clean cotton socks that
seemed to be similar to what are now
known as "British hose" The probability
is that the clothes he had on we're nearly
all of British manufacture and had been
secured when Mobile was favorite port
with blockade-runners. Drawn over the
Texans face was white, broad brimmed
SLOUGH hat, so that his form, features and
dress gave evidence of the typical South
erner of the better and weather. class.
Already there had begun to gather abou1
the dead Texan romantic history of the
way he met death, and all the forenoon
there was clustered around him a group of
Federal soldiers, reciting and hearing re-
cited this history:
When the Federals entered the works
the evening previous all the Confederates
gave themselves up as prisoners of war
but the Texas Captain, who refused to sur
render under any circumstances, and when
importuned by the Federals said: "No sir.
surrender's not my uame,n ami showed
fight, as they used to say in army circles.
Whether his efforts at resistance were
such as merited death, or whether in the
excitement of battle and triumph, his life
was taken in mere wantonness, is not
known; at sny rate just above one ear
was great bullet hole, and after Lee had
signed the papers surrendering the Army
of Northern Virginia to General Grant, one
more name was added to terrible death
roll already frightfully long
The writer listened to the recital of the
dead Texans story from the lips OF sol
der standing by, who, when he finished,
added. pointing to another soldier standing
. little to one side; There is the man that